Glasgow & SW Scotland Butterflies

Forester (Adscita statices) is one of the Burnet moths but does not have any crimson  spots on an inky blue/black background which are charcteristic of this group of spectacular moths. The Forester has green and very shiny wings making it unmistakeable and a very attractive moth to find.

Forester moth Credit: Andrew Masterman

The habitat of the Forester in Scotland is considered to be damp meadows and coastal marshes with a medium to tall sward which contain the larval foodplants, Common Sorrel and Sheep Sorrel, and its preferred nectaring plants which are Ragged Robin, Marsh Thistle and Devil’s Bit Scabious.  Light grazing to control scrub is considered essential but overgrazing is detrimental. Some shelter provided by trees or bracken may also be required but more data on sites in which it occurs would increase our knowledge of its ecology and help to conserve it.

The Forester is on the wing from early June in warm years through July with a few individuals flying in early August. It is a day flying moth being active in sunshine but may be found resting on vegetation in cloudy weather.

The Forester has a well-distributed but local distribution in England but is in decline as the open semi-natural habitats which it inhabits are being lost to agricultural intensification.

In Scotland, the Forester is confined to coastal parts of Argyll and the nearby islands of Jura, Lismore and Mull. But there are some old records from the Borders so it is likely that it used to be more widespread in Scotland but has been lost due to agricultural intensification.

There are 20 Forester records on the west coast of Argyll. It is very likely that the Forester is under-recorded so searching for it in coastal areas between the 20 known sites may well lead to the discovery of new sites.  There are records for the isle of Seil, so it is possible that both Kerrera and Luing also have the Forester. Other promising areas to search for the Forester would be the Ardfern peninsular and the Loch Melfort area.

You can download a Word document containing the three maps below and the grid references by clicking here.

Forester sites on the west coast of Argyll

The map below (click for larger image) shows a close up view of the more northerly sites in the above map.

Forester sites near Oban

The map below (click for larger image) shows a close up view of the more southerly sites near Kilmartin.

Forester sites near Kilmartin

Written by Andrew Masterman

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